Even my pub cheese made with fishygeenan is delicious. I can still taste a little funky agar/carrageenan taste too it if I try, but it's still really good. I will try starting something else today! Maybe the fresh mozz.

Miyoko, I have a question about coconut oil. I've made a raw cashew cheese with it before and the whole thing ended up tasting like coconuts! There wasn't that much in there so I'm worried about it after looking over some the recipes in your book (like the brie, which I want to make SO badly!). It was the kind sold at Trader Joe's, is it just the wrong product? A friend told me there are some coconut oils that don't taste coconutty, I'm not sure what to get!

Use refined. You can get it from Spectrum or Whole Foods' 365 brand. I have used other brands as well. Sometimes it is called "unscented."

Another sharp cheddar question, Miyoko, please. I cultured for 72 hours, as you suggested, to get that nice sharp flavor. When I uncovered the cheese to thicken it this afternoon, there was just a wee bit of white fuzz (mold?) on the surface. I scraped it off and thickened it by the book's directions , not the VegNews recipe, since I'm still unclear about the difference between the two approaches. I assume I won't die from the mold, and I didn't want to waste my investment in time and ingredients. But how do I keep this from occurring in the future? The weather has been pleasant since I mixed up the cheese with high temps about 74 F and low humidity so I don't think my kitchen is too hot right now. Guess I won't be able to make cheese during the heat waves we typically experience in August. Thanks for any help you can offer.

Another sharp cheddar question, Miyoko, please. I cultured for 72 hours, as you suggested, to get that nice sharp flavor. When I uncovered the cheese to thicken it this afternoon, there was just a wee bit of white fuzz (mold?) on the surface. I scraped it off and thickened it by the book's directions , not the VegNews recipe, since I'm still unclear about the difference between the two approaches. I assume I won't die from the mold, and I didn't want to waste my investment in time and ingredients. But how do I keep this from occurring in the future? The weather has been pleasant since I mixed up the cheese with high temps about 74 F and low humidity so I don't think my kitchen is too hot right now. Guess I won't be able to make cheese during the heat waves we typically experience in August. Thanks for any help you can offer.

Hmmm...I have never had mold develop during the culturing process. I have made them in a variety of different temperatures, and the only difference has been in length of culturing (mold has occurred several weeks after making them, although the cheddar has kept for several months and never got moldy in the fridge). I did just touch upon a similar subject on my blog, however, so you may want to read that, but my guess would be that there were unwanted bacteria in there. You have to start with really clean implements, container, and make sure you use a clean spoon to taste each time (don't use fingers, in other words). I am guessing that at some point, something unwanted got in there. Also, it's not an exact science - you should taste the cheese a couple of times per day to see if it has achieved the desired sharpness. Perhaps in your case, you didn't need the full 72 hours. How does the cheese taste after you scraped the mold off?

I've posted in my blog some answers and tips to some of the questions that have come up on this discussion board, including the difference between the VegNews cheeses and the ones in my book (and yes, the Buffalo Mozzarella in VegNews is an improvement! The others are just mostly different or easier to make). I have some new tips on it as well, so check it out. http://veganmanifesto.blogspot.com/2012 ... heesy.html

Miyoko, thanks for your responses and your blog post. All your tips are so helpful. I think I could have stopped my cheddar culturing at 48 hours - it tasted fine at that point but I thought I'd push for sharper flavor. I know my implements were clean but I can't vouch for my impatient husband's fingers! We had your Alfredo sauce with the gruyere this evening and it was delicious. I'll be trying your Swiss next as well as the melt able mozzarella - can't wait.

Has anyone else tried making rejuvelac with millet? I started mine three days ago, and nothing has sprouted yet.

I didn't make rejuvelac, but from what I remember, millet sprouts in 1 to 2 days after the initial soaking.

Are you using whole millet for sprouting or millet for cooking? Millet for cooking often has the outer hull removed which keeps it from sprouting.

Thanks, gingerlime - I just used millet I purchased from the bulk bins at Whole Foods. Now that I look at photos, I can see that it does have the hull removed. Guess I'll throw this out and start again. So, is quinoa out of the grocery box ok, or do I need to go to a health food store and find grains specifically for sprouting? (apologies for the dumb questions, I clearly don't know what I'm doing and don't want to screw it up again)

Loving the Oat American Cheese -- I was hoping that it would be similar to the Wayfare Foods cheese which is made with oatmeal (and the closest store selling it is 60+ miles away). I didn't include any of the thickening options as I haven't ordered any carageenan yet and I have not had much luck with agar-thickened foods, which tend to get too jell-o like in past recipes at least. Without the thickening agents the texture is spot-on to the Wayfare foods cheese. I added a bit of smoked paprika and liquid smoke and the flavor is great. The oats give it a great creamy thickness that I don't usually get in my cheese concoctions.

I have made the rejuvelac and basic cashew cheese. The basic cashew cheese is now in the fridge after being transformed into cashew chevre with lemon zest and peppercorns. I am looking forward to trying it tomorrow.

One tip I have is to really give the cheeses, even the relatively quick cheeses like the ones I have made, time for the flavors to meld. For example, the flavor of the oat american cheese was tasty right after I made it, but after a night in the fridge it was delicious and perfect. Looking forward to trying more recipes in the future. Thanks to everyone (and Miyoko!) for your tips on this thread.

I started the basic cashew cheese last evening, and, upon waking this morning, I find it has quite a smell. It doesn't really taste like anything, but the smell is fairly strong. Is that normal?

In the course of an evening, the cheese shouldn't develop such a strong smell while not tasting like anything. I have never had this happen in the hundreds of times I have made it, so I can only surmise that something unwanted (another bacteria) got into it. What is the texture? Has it risen slightly and thickened, with some air pockets? Or does it look unchanged? Is it possibly the container? The cheeses don't usually have a really strong smell (at least not unpleasant), so I find this baffling. While the container you are using may have been clean, are you sure that the blender (under the blade) was?

I started the basic cashew cheese last evening, and, upon waking this morning, I find it has quite a smell. It doesn't really taste like anything, but the smell is fairly strong. Is that normal?

In the course of an evening, the cheese shouldn't develop such a strong smell while not tasting like anything. I have never had this happen in the hundreds of times I have made it, so I can only surmise that something unwanted (another bacteria) got into it. What is the texture? Has it risen slightly and thickened, with some air pockets? Or does it look unchanged? Is it possibly the container? The cheeses don't usually have a really strong smell (at least not unpleasant), so I find this baffling. While the container you are using may have been clean, are you sure that the blender (under the blade) was?

I'd say that the texture has thickened, but it just smells wrong. When you decide it's time to stop, is there a smell then? And, if so, could you explain the smell?Something is definitely off--and what a shame for all those cashews! I think it's because my machine (food processor--not fancy) is so weak. I had to blend on and on and on before it was remotely smooth. By that point everything had REALLY heated up. I feel like that extra heat contributed to the problem. I may try again this time on my blender although I feel like she's on her last legs, as well :( Will be nice. One batch a day. Has to be a way around this,

I started the basic cashew cheese last evening, and, upon waking this morning, I find it has quite a smell. It doesn't really taste like anything, but the smell is fairly strong. Is that normal?

In the course of an evening, the cheese shouldn't develop such a strong smell while not tasting like anything. I have never had this happen in the hundreds of times I have made it, so I can only surmise that something unwanted (another bacteria) got into it. What is the texture? Has it risen slightly and thickened, with some air pockets? Or does it look unchanged? Is it possibly the container? The cheeses don't usually have a really strong smell (at least not unpleasant), so I find this baffling. While the container you are using may have been clean, are you sure that the blender (under the blade) was?

I'd say that the texture has thickened, but it just smells wrong. When you decide it's time to stop, is there a smell then? And, if so, could you explain the smell?Something is definitely off--and what a shame for all those cashews! I think it's because my machine (food processor--not fancy) is so weak. I had to blend on and on and on before it was remotely smooth. By that point everything had REALLY heated up. I feel like that extra heat contributed to the problem. I may try again this time on my blender although I feel like she's on her last legs, as well :( Will be nice. One batch a day. Has to be a way around this,

Okay, well, I know now what happened. When your food processor overheated, the cheese got hot, killing the probiotic. So there were no friendly bacteria in there to preserve and culture the cheese. It just went bad. With your equipment, you should soak the cashews for at least 8 hours (drain well). This will make them easier to puree. Keep in mind, however, that your cheese will likely be a little softer than if the cashews were soaked a shorter time.

Miyoko, I have a question about coconut oil. I've made a raw cashew cheese with it before and the whole thing ended up tasting like coconuts! There wasn't that much in there so I'm worried about it after looking over some the recipes in your book (like the brie, which I want to make SO badly!). It was the kind sold at Trader Joe's, is it just the wrong product? A friend told me there are some coconut oils that don't taste coconutty, I'm not sure what to get!

Use refined. You can get it from Spectrum or Whole Foods' 365 brand. I have used other brands as well. Sometimes it is called "unscented."

I got an issue of VegNews...there are recipes in it from the author of the book (Miyoko)...I am in the process of making the Brie, buffalo mozz and I already made the cream cheese (good). Its time consuming--takes a couple of days, but already I can tell its SOOOOOOO worth it!!!!!! The brie tastes amazing and its not even finished yet!

Oh, man. Last week I had to throw out a few batches of basic cashew cheese because they went off after one evening. Today, it happened again. What is going wrong?? The first time, I believed it was because my food processor overheated (thus, killing the probiotics), but this time, I used a different machine as well as a long soaking period, and the machine did not overheat. It's really frustrating. Could it be that my rejuvalac is not potent enough? When I stopped the rejuvalac, it was white, cloudy and tasted a bit like lemon juice, but was not super strong tasting. Also, I wouldn't say ALL the quinoa grains had sprouted, but most of them, I think. What if I would boil all my equipment? Does anyone else do that? Can anyone explain how the basic cashew cheese should smell when it's ready? I would feel so stupid if I've been throwing it away and there's nothing wrong with it, but, honestly, my batches smelled rotten. Also, how important is it to use filtered water rather than tap?Please help! I really want to make cheese, and I don't want to waste any more cashews!

In my experience, if it smells rotten, it most likely is bad. Get rid of it. It sounds like your rejuvelac was fine--it should have that lemony smell and taste--I only use quinoa to make rejuvelac, so I am familiar with that and do not know what any other grain rejuv's taste like.

Based on what others are saying, maybe its just a little bad bacteria that got in, or it got to warm? I left some pumpkin seed cheese in the microwave overnight overnight a few weeks ago, and the next morning it smelled like something had died. It was horrible. I figured it was the lack of circulating air and that it got too hot in the microwave (I left the light on so Im sure that didnt help). I have not had any bad turns w/cashews.

When you culture cashews and its ready, it smells and tastes (to me) like cultured cheese or maybe a little like yogurt...it should be pleasant and sort of tart/salty, and maybe slightly "yeasty" flavored. It should smell like that too. I have never boiled my equipment, but its not a bad idea to do so and I will from now on.

I dont know if I helped you at all..I hope your other batches turn out well. :)